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Possessing Demon

Possessing Demon

AX.GHW.13.06.04

A mid-tier Shadow entity operating within a human host without the host's consent. Not a calculated inhabitation like the Crossroads Demon, but a forced possession. The entity's nature and power suppress the host's will and use the host's body as a vehicle for whatever purpose brought the entity through.

Type: Shadow Entity (Possessing)

Threat Power Package: Standard

Size: Medium (human host)

Attributes

  • Body: 3D (host's Body enhanced by possession)
  • Speed: 3D
  • Wit: 4D

Talents

  • Brawl: 2D
  • Supernatural Power (Shadow): 3D
  • Deceive: 3D
  • Notice: 2D
  • Resolve: 3D

Combat Statistics

  • Health: 33 (20 + Body 3 + Standard modifier 10)
  • Defense: 2 (Speed 3 + Armor 0 = 1, +1 = 2)
  • Armor: None (host's physical protection only)

Saves

  • Body Save: 3D (Body 3D)
  • Speed Save: 3D (Speed 3D)
  • Wit Save: 7D (Wit 4D + Resolve 3D)

Attacks

  • Shadow Strike: Body 3D + Brawl 2D = 5D vs Defense, 3–4 Shadow damage typical; leaves visible cold marks (frost patterns or darkened bruising) at the point of impact
  • Shadow Blast: Wit 4D + Supernatural Power 3D = 7D vs target's Wit + Resolve (contested, Near range), 2–4 Shadow damage + target must make Wit Save vs Threshold 3 or become Frightened for 1D3 Turns

Shadow Traits

  • Shadow Immunity: Immune to Shadow damage
  • Radiant Vulnerability: Double damage from Radiant; blessed water deals 2D3 Radiant damage when poured directly on the host
  • Shared Body: The host is still present inside the possessed body. Attacks that damage the host's body damage the host as well. Killing the host kills the entity's vehicle but not the entity. Expulsion is the appropriate response.

Special Abilities

  • Voice of the Hollow: The Possessing Demon's voice carries Shadow resonance. Any non-Shadow-Bound character who hears it directly must make a Wit Save vs Threshold 2 at first exposure or become Shaken for one Turn. This effect does not repeat unless the character has been away from the entity for more than an hour.
  • Know the Host: The Possessing Demon has access to the host's memories, skills, and relationships. It knows who the host knows, what the host knows, and can impersonate the host convincingly. Detecting the possession requires supernatural awareness (Psychic Sensitivity, True Seeing, Blood Sense Bloodline Read) or the tells: eyes that go dark under certain light, unusual cold emanating from the host, tolerance for sacred materials that affect the entity.

Tactics

The Possessing Demon's primary advantage is that it looks like someone the party may know. It exploits this: using the host's relationships to get close, gathering information, identifying weaknesses before acting. When combat becomes unavoidable it uses Shadow Blast to impose fear conditions, then Shadow Strike against frightened targets. It retreats if the expulsion process begins, trying to injure the host to complicate the ritual and buy time.

Lore & Ecology

Possessing Shadow entities enter the hidden world through breaches: weak points in the Veil's metaphysical layer, opened by ritual, by compact violation, or by sustained supernatural activity in one location over time. Most possessions are targeted rather than random; the entity chose this host for a reason. Understanding why this person was targeted is often the key to understanding the entity's purpose.

Banishment

Expulsion (Governing Attribute + Occult vs Threshold 3, Extended Work) removes the entity and returns it to its origin without killing the host. Sacred Fire's Accord's Command (Command Departure at Threshold 3+ against the entity specifically) can compel partial withdrawal that makes the host's own resistance temporarily possible. The host can make a Wit Save vs Threshold 3 to push back, and combined host and practitioner effort completes the expulsion at −1 Threshold. The host survives with memory intact and typically significant psychological aftermath.

Scene Materials

  • Host requires immediate medical and psychological support
  • Evidence of the possession event (for BUA classification; medical records, witness accounts)
  • Shadow residue left in the host's system ($200–400 research value to Aldersham)